Cleetus McFarland And Leroy Are Returning To The World Cup Finals

Garret Mitchell, aka Cleetus McFarland, made his World Cup Finals (WCF) debut last year and he’s coming back in 2019 for some more Wild Street class racing action. The 2001 C5 Corvette “Leroy The Savage” will be Mitchell’s ride once again, and it could set some records at the World Cup. With a class full of difficult competition from all corners of the world, Mitchell is going to let all the horsepower Leroy has loose.

Mitchell is well known for his YouTube antics as Cleetus McFarland and for laying down some blistering passes while rowing the gears in Leroy. Being the first GM stick shift car to crack into the 7-second zone is something Mitchell is proud of, but he also wants to collect some win lights at the WCF event this year. To help make that happen, Leroy is going to be rolling into the WCF race with bigger back housings on its turbos, plus it will have a ZR1 rear differential to deal with all that horsepower.

Last year was Mitchell’s first WCF experience and it left an impression on him. When the time came to register for the race this year he made sure to get his name on the list early so he could come back to compete.

“The World Cup was our first real high-level event when it comes to competition and it was exciting to see all the different classes. There were so many fast cars and it was the hardest competition we faced. We’re usually in a class full of stick-shift cars so it was different to be in a class where there were automatics in the mix. WCF is both a racers and spectator’s race so that makes it a well-balanced event, it’s and fun to attend,” Mitchell says.

Having such a great experience last year made Mitchell hungry to come back again. Taking what he learned, Mitchell has devised a plan to succeed at the WCF this year. His hope is that all the planning and preparation will lead to an appearance in the winner’s circle on Sunday.

“Our goal is to get the car there and get it in the mid to high 7-second range right away. After that, we want it to be consistent and run the same pass pretty much every hit we make. That might be our ticket to winning this year. Last year we were just all over the place and broke a lot of parts in the driveline. We hope the upgrades we’ve made coming into the event this year stop those problems. I think we have a better combination overall,” Mitchell explains.

Putting this much effort into the WCF could pay off in more than just an overall win for Mitchell; there will be a special race-within-the-race that he’s more than ready to participate in.

“What’s going to be awesome is the H-pattern Shootout that will be going on. It adds a lot to the event and makes it fun. We have a chance to race against the fastest stick shift cars in the world and I really want to win the H-Pattern Shootout,” Mitchell says.

About the author

Brian Wagner

Spending his childhood at different race tracks around Ohio with his family’s 1967 Nova, Brian developed a true love for drag racing. When Brian is not writing, you can find him at the track as a crew chief, doing freelance photography, or beating on his nitrous-fed 2000 Trans Am.